Thomas Keiser's arrest Sunday, within hours of the Chargers' getting a playoff berth, took me back to the last time the Chargers were playoff-bound.

Remember?

Four years ago as the Chargers prepared for their Divisional playoff game against the Jets, time that could be used for rest was instead devoted to partying. Our Kevin Acee reported then that "some players were out" from "Friday night into Saturday morning" leading up to the Sunday game.

The partying probably didn't cause the Chargers to lose to the underdog Jets, but when LaDanian Tomlinson questioned the commitment of some teammates, the partying may have been part of his critique two weeks later.

“I don’t know what it is,” Tomlinson said. “We’re (at) the point where these guys that come into the league, it’s not about the same values no more. It’s not about football, the things that you’re taught — faith, family, football. To them, it’s not about that no more. It’s the name … It’s ‘me.’ And that’s the thing that’s so disappointing to me, because I can’t deal with that no more. If that’s going to be allowed I just can’t deal with that type of stuff.”

A year ago when discussing past Chargers teams, former Patriots guard Stephen Neal questioned their ability to handle success. Neal, a Chargers fan who grew up in San Diego and lives in Poway, said he hopes the Chargers "get that team thing down."

This Chargers team has nailed the team thing. Through the board. It is a team less talented than the '08 Chargers squad that went 8-8, Eric Weddle said.

Clinching the playoff berth, however, confronted several Chargers with a new level of fame, success and lofty outside expectations. How will they respond?

Keiser's arrest needn't be a distraction, nor is it necessarily a reflection of Keiser. But it was a clunky early step toward a winnable game Sunday against the Bengals.